Sumo Scene / Special Sumo Tournament at Ise Grand Shrines is Cherry on Spring Regional Tour Cake; No Bearing on Rankings, But Should Not Be Taken Lightly

The Yomiuri Shimbun

14:39 JST, March 21, 2025

The Spring Grand Sumo Tournament in Osaka has entered its second week. After the action in the ring wraps up, the wrestlers will take a brief break before embarking on the annual spring “jungyo,” or regional tour.

As always, the first stop of the tour will take the wrestlers to Ise, Mie Prefecture, where they will participate in an exhibition tournament held within the precincts of the Ise Grand Shrines.

As I said in a previous column, the sumo world has a close association with the Shinto religion, and each year it holds events at major shrines around the country, including Meiji Jingu in Tokyo, Atsuta Jingu in Aichi Prefecture and Sumiyoshi Taisha in Osaka. In addition to offering prayers, these visits are highlighted by the performing of the ring-entering ceremony by the yokozuna.

The special tournament held at the Ise Grand Shrines, however, is regarded as a ritual that strongly heralds the arrival of spring.

On the day before the event, the sumo contingent will board a chartered express train in Osaka bound for Ise. The next day, the group, including senior Japan Sumo Association officials, yokozuna, ozeki and other wrestlers, file into the main hall and other sacred locations in the Inner Shrine to offer prayers.

The main attraction is the ring-entering ceremony, performed in front of the worship hall. To get there, the ceremonial apron-clad yokozuna, accompanied by a sword bearer and dew-sweeper, crosses the Uji Bridge spanning the Isuzu River. Often this takes place when the cherry blossoms are in full bloom, creating a picture postcard-perfect scene.

Terunofuji, who has since retired and is now a sumo elder, said in 2024 that the magnitude of taking part in the ritual made him proud. “It’s such an incredible place,” Terunofuji said at the time. “It is an honor to be able to perform the ring-entering ceremony here.”

Hoshoryu, who recently earned promotion to yokozuna, unfortunately withdrew from the Spring tournament in the middle of the tourney. All eyes will be on whether he will participate in the exhibition tournament at the Ise Grand Shrines.

The exhibition tournament at the Ise Grand Shrines dates back 70 years to its start in 1955. Records indicate that yokozuna Kagamisato was the inaugural champion of the tournament, which is held in a permanent ring on the shrine grounds and follows a knockout format.

Last year, Kotonowaka (now Kotozakura) won the tournament following his ozeki debut at the Spring tournament.

As it is not one of the six grand tournaments, the results in Ise have no bearing on the rankings. Still, the wrestlers want to get the long regional tour off to a good start as they prepare for the Summer tournament in May and thus cannot take the event lightly.

— Kamimura is a sumo expert.